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Breastfeeding

  • Exclusive breastfeeding rates stagnate at 29% – UNICEF

    Exclusive breastfeeding rates stagnate at 29% – UNICEF

    The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has expressed concern over stagnating exclusive breastfeeding rates in Nigeria, which remain at just 29 per cent.

    This is contained in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja to commemorate World Breastfeeding Week (WBW), observed globally from August 1 to 7 each year.

    The theme for the 2025 celebration, “Prioritise Breastfeeding: Create Sustainable Support Systems,” underscores the critical role of breast milk in child survival, growth, and healthy development.

    According to the statement, while more than 90 per cent of mothers in Nigeria breastfeed, the rate of early initiation of breastfeeding has declined, from 42 per cent in 2018 to 36 per cent in 2023.

    UNICEF noted that data from the 2023–2024 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) revealed troubling trends in optimal breastfeeding practices.

    “Only 23 per cent of babies are breastfed up to the recommended age of two years.

    “Just 12 of Nigeria’s 36 states, including the Federal Capital Territory, currently offer paid maternity leave for up to six months,” the statement said.

    The statement highlighted that breast milk was not only natural but also the most complete source of nutrition for infants.

    “It contains antibodies that protect children from illnesses, improves cognitive performance, and reduces the likelihood of obesity in later life.

    “For mothers, breastfeeding lowers the risk of certain cancers and Type 2 diabetes. It is also a climate-smart, sustainable, cost-effective, and zero-waste method of feeding infants.

    “In spite of these benefits, breastfeeding remains under-supported and often misunderstood in many settings,” UNICEF added.

    To reverse the negative trend, UNICEF emphasised the need for mothers to be supported at home, in healthcare facilities, and at work.

    The agency recommended initiating breastfeeding within the first hour of birth, exclusively breastfeeding for the first six months, and continuing breastfeeding with complementary foods up to at least 24 months.

    UNICEF Nigeria Country Representative, Wafaa Abdelatef, reiterated the importance of breast milk to child development.

    “Breast milk is central to child survival. We all have a role to play in supporting mothers to breastfeed effectively.

    “This World Breastfeeding Week, we urge every level of government, every workplace, and every community to build lasting support systems so that no mother lacks the encouragement or resources she needs.

    “Let us mark this week not just with words, but with action,” she said.

    The statement also renewed the Federal Government and UNICEF’s joint call to prioritise breastfeeding through sustainable support systems nationwide.

    Referencing the Nutrition 774 Initiative, UNICEF called on policymakers, employers, healthcare workers, civil society, and communities to collaborate in promoting breastfeeding.

    It also urged that health workers be equipped with adequate tools and training to support breastfeeding mothers.

    “Let us extend paid maternity leave to six months across all states in Nigeria and champion breastfeeding as a smart national investment that protects every Nigerian child’s right to adequate nutrition,” the statement added.

    World Breastfeeding Week has been celebrated annually since 1992. In 2018, the World Health Assembly endorsed WBW as a key global strategy for promoting breastfeeding.

  • Stakeholders urge women with HIV/AIDS to prioritise exclusive breastfeeding

    Stakeholders urge women with HIV/AIDS to prioritise exclusive breastfeeding

    Stakeholders on Wednesday urged women living with HIV/AIDS to practice exclusive breastfeeding to boost their babies’ immunity and protect them against diarrhoea and other childhood illnesses.

    Helen Aphan, Assistant Secretary, Association of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, made the call while commemorating World Breastfeeding Week in Abuja.

    The theme of the breastfeeding week is ‘Closing the Gap: Breastfeeding Support for All’.

    Aphan said women from marginalised populations, such as those living with HIV/AIDS, often faced breastfeeding challenges due to concerns about mother-to-child transmission.

    However, she revealed that this could be avoided and prevented with exclusive breastfeeding, as the virus is not transmitted through breast milk.

    According to her, apart from the health benefits of exclusive breastfeeding for the child, it ensures that babies born to positive mothers live healthy lives with good nutritional outcomes.

    “The structurally silent women who are often inadequately enlightened, we gather to reaffirm our commitment to promoting and supporting breastfeeding as the cornerstone of maternal and child health.

    “Breastfeeding is exclusive only if you do it exclusively for six months without interference.

    “As we observe the 2024 World Breastfeeding Day, we will discuss progress, challenges, and strategy as we ensure that every breastfeeding mother and child receives the support to thrive,” she said.

    Beatrice Aluku, a nurse at Karu General Hospital, said that contrary to the belief that the child could be infected with the virus through breastfeeding, breast milk does not contain the HIV virus.

    “Babies cannot be infected through exclusive breastfeeding except if there is a wound on the mother’s breast during breastfeeding.

    “Women living with HIV/AIDS are not excluded from breastfeeding because it is very important to the mothers in terms of recuperating and returning to their pre-pregnancy state.

    “It is important to the child because the child gains every nutrient and immunity needed from the mother.

    “I advise HIV-infected mothers not to be scared of feeding your child for up to one year.

    “The reason why you don’t breastfeed for more than one year is that at that stage, the baby’s teeth are out, and the baby can bite the mother, suck on the blood, and end up getting infected,” she said.

    Also, Dr Temitope Ilori, Director-General, National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), noted the crucial role community-based initiatives play in reaching grassroots women with information on breastfeeding benefits, especially for women living with HIV/AIDS.

    Ilori, represented by Esther Ikomi, Deputy Director, Policy Planning and Coordination, NACA said “Breastfeeding support is essential for all mothers.”

    Ojo Victoria, a participant at the event who exclusively breastfed three of her four children, said apart from saving cost, she had discovered that exclusive breastfeeding improved the health and intelligence of her children.

    Alhaji Aminu Bako, Traditional Chief of Kuruduma community in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), reiterated the commitment of traditional leaders to support grassroots initiatives seeking to better the lives of the populace.

    HIV/AIDS no longer a public threat – Stakeholders

    An NGO, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), announced on Wednesday that it has provided in-care HIV/AIDS services support to more than 2 million persons living with the virus globally.

    Dr Echey Ijezie, Nigeria’s Country Director, made this known at an event in Abuja to mark the milestone recorded in 47 countries since its more than 20 years of operation.

    “We are immensely proud to reach this historic milestone when our global programmes launched 20 years ago in South Africa and Uganda with 100 patients in each.

    “We never imagined we would be serving 2 million lives under our care around the world.

    “At the time we started, it cost 5,000 dollars per patient annually for ARVs. Today, more than half of AHF’s 2 million lives receiving care are in Africa.

    “The combination of medicine and advocacy, implementing prevention, care, and treatment programmes, and the support of government and other international donors have allowed us to reach this momentous achievement collectively.

    “In Nigeria, we started with a zero patient base in 2011, but today, we have 29,000 in care under the Nigeria programme.

    “Many of them in very remote locations in Abuja, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Cross River, Kogi, and Nasarawa states,” he said.

    He added that AHF continued to leverage innovative healthcare delivery models to expand its reach and impact, especially in communities, by providing comprehensive medical care, treatment, testing, prevention, and support services.

    Ijezie reiterated the commitment of AHF to advocate for access to HIV treatment and care for everyone who needed it by supporting the government in HIV/AIDS intervention and response.

    Dr Chukwuma Anyaike, Director of the Public Health Department, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, while commending AHF, reiterated the government’s commitment towards improving health outcomes and unlocking the health sector value chain.

    “We are excited to be working with AHF; one thing stands out – their robustness in getting to the hard-to-reach areas to support those living with the virus.

    “We are excited about their intervention that has brought succour and hope for not just the people living with the virus, but other people as well,” he said.

    Abdulkadir Ibrahim, National Coordinator, Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN), said the more than 2 million persons in care treatment showed AHF’s commitment to ending the virus globally.

    “Putting 2 million lives on treatment shows that we are moving towards ending AIDS in Nigeria and globally.

    “Scientifically, we know that treatment is working and serves as a means of prevention.

    “By this, it shows that AIDS is no longer a public threat, as people are living and accessing treatment and living a healthy life.”

    Oluwafunke Odunkade, Technical Officer, HIV, Viral Hepatitis, and STI, WHO-Nigeria, stressed the need to continue to ensure that all the people brought into care have optimum access to healthcare services.

    “While we celebrate, we must be reminded that this is not the end. We still have the last hurdle to cross, and we can only achieve that by collaboratively rethinking our strategies.

    “We are ensuring that HIV is fully mainstreamed into the health systems and not standing alone, and also ensuring that all the people that we brought into care have the optimum level of care.

    “It is not just for us to have the numbers, but it’s important that they have optimum care,” she said.

  • UNICEF pushes for exclusive breastfeeding, conducive work environment for mothers

    UNICEF pushes for exclusive breastfeeding, conducive work environment for mothers

    Wevole Ezin, Calabar.

    The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has urged nursing mothers to practice Zero Water/ exclusive breastfeeding for six months on their infants

    UNICEF stated this in Enugu during a Zonal Media Dialogue to kick start the “zero water” campaign for breastfeeding mothers with the theme “enabling breastfeeding: making a difference for working parents in commemoration of the World Breastfeeding Week, (WBW).

    Speaking during her presentations, the Nutrition Specialist, UNICEF, Field office, Enugu, Mrs. Ngozi Onuora, said effective infant feeding is a building block for human development and essential for child survival.

    She attributed Poor Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices as major contributors to increasing burden of infant and childhood diseases and deaths (morbidity & mortality), adding that, “working mothers in Nigeria often struggled with breastfeeding.”

    On her part, the Communication Officer, UNICEF Field Office, Enugu, Dr. Ijeoma Onuoha charged the media to use it tools to campaign for effective breastfeeding.

    She said the WBW which kick starts on the 1st to 7th of August 2023, is to promote exclusive breastfeeding to enhance children’s growth and to create conducive working environment for parents.

    “According to research, only 9 percent of organisations had a workplace breastfeeding policy and only 1.5 of the public sector organisations provide creches or daycare.

    “UNICEF expects that 100 percent of organisations are supportive in the implementation of breastfeeding/ friendly programmes for working mothers in Nigeria,” she said.

    She further called on lawmakers to make friendly policies, laws that would build on maternity protection, including leave for husbands to support nursing mothers.

    Onuoha added that “legislating for at least 18 weeks, preferably for more than 6 months, paid maternity leave and ensuring employers provide paid time off and a dedicated space for breastfeeding mothers was important.

    “It is also important to ensure that all women have access to maternity entitlements, including those in the informal sector or on limited contracts.

    “Tackling employment-related discrimination against women, including during and after pregnancy and birth.

    “Employers and managers can make breastfeeding and work conducive by providing maternity leave that at minimum meets national requirements.

    “Providing time and space for breastfeeding or expressing and storing breastmilk and also Providing options that reduce separation of women from their babies after maternity leave, such as flexible work schedules.” The UNICEF Communication Officer urged.

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  • Women who don’t breast feed susceptible to breast cancer — expert

    Women who don’t breast feed susceptible to breast cancer — expert

    The Chairperson, the Medical Women Association of Nigeria (MWAN) Plateau chapter, Prof. Amaka Ocheke, says that women who don’t breastfeed are more susceptible to the risk of getting breast cancer.

    Ocheke who is a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist with the University of Jos Teaching Hospital (JUTH), said this during a breast cancer awareness walk in Jos.

    The walk was organised in collaboration with the Nigeria Women Journalists (NAWOJ) and the National Council of Women Societies (NCWS) on Thursday.

    Ocheke further said that other predisposing factors were early commencement of menstruation and early start of menopause, drinking, smoking, consumption of fatty food and family history (genetics).

    She said that early detection “is key for survival, as when it is detected early it is treatable”.

    Ocheke, however, noted that most women only came when the disease was in an advanced stage and difficult to manage.

    She called on women and girls to inculcate the act of examining their breasts and armpits monthly for abnormalities such as lumps and change in the appearance of the breast skin and nipple as more ladies in their 20s and 30s were coming down with breast cancer.

    She called on women from ages 40 and above to ensure they go for yearly mammogram as the act helps to detect tumors in the breast very early.

    Similarly, the chairperson of NAWOJ in Plateau, Mrs Nene Dung, said that the walk was salient in creating and rising awareness about breast cancer.

    Dung explained that most women “still live in denial as regards breast cancer and such should be discouraged as the denial has led to the death of many women”.

    The walk began from the city centre to old JUTH.

    NAN

  • Ex-BBNaija star, Tboss shares picture of breastfeeding her 2-year-old daughter

    Ex-BBNaija star, Tboss shares picture of breastfeeding her 2-year-old daughter

    Former BBNaija housemate, Tboss has shared a moment of breastfeeding her 2-year-old daughter in a photoshoot.

    The mum-of-one added that her family has joked that she will be one of those mothers who would continue breastfeeding even when the child starts school.

    See post:

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    A post shared by TBoss Idowu? (@officialtboss_)

  • NAFDAC makes move against aggressive marketing of breast-milk substitutes

    NAFDAC makes move against aggressive marketing of breast-milk substitutes

    The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Wednesday unveiled documents to support compliance to breastfeeding code implementation and Breast Milk Substitutes (BMS) regulations in the country.

    The unveiling ceremony was done in Abuja at the 40th Anniversary of the International Code of marketing of the BMS in Nigeria with the theme “Implementing the BMS Code in Nigeria: Progress, Challenges and Opportunities”.

    The Director General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said that the BMS Code was an international health policy framework for breastfeeding protection and promotion adopted by the 3rd and 4th of the World Health Assembly (WHA) in 1981.

    Represented by her Special Assistant, Mr Gbenga Fajemirokun, the director general said that the Code was developed as a public health strategy.

    She added that it was aimed at contributing to the provision of safe and adequate nutrition for infants by protecting and promoting breastfeeding and to ensure proper use of breast-milk substitutes only when they were necessary.

    Adeyeye said that the code was to protect mothers from aggressive marketing of breast-milk substitutes.

    She further said that the code was also to ensure safe feeding and better nutrition for infants and young children as the provision of the code recommended restrictions on marketing of BMS.

    She added that “Nigeria, a member of the World Health Organisation (WHO) voted for code adoption in 1981 and is expected to implement all its provisions in the entirety as a minimum requirement and to translate it into national legislation, regulations and other suitable measures.

    “As a country, Nigeria takes her international and national obligations very serious which is why the provisions of CAP M5 Marketing BMS Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 as amended by Decree 22 of 1999.

    “This Act designated NAFDAC as the regulatory agency to implement, monitor and enforce the code in Nigeria.

    “It is our collective desire as NAFDAC, the agency designated to implement and enforce this code compliance in Nigeria, to work collaboratively with all stakeholders and partners.

    “To contribute to achieving safe and adequate nutrition for our infants through protection and promotion of breastfeeding.”

    The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, said that the ministry remained committed to improve survival of children, especially the ones under the age of five-year and maternal child care through various policies that would promote healthy living.

    Represented by Dr Anas Kolo, the Director of Family Health in the ministry, said that the ministry had gone ahead to promote baby friendly hospital initiative.

    Ehanire maintained that the ministry would continue to promote exclusive breastfeeding and other initiatives in the same direction.

    The minister, therefore, encouraged mothers to continue to breastfeed their babies in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that support mechanisms were on the way to encourage mothers.

    In his goodwill message, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Health, Sen. Ibrahim Oloriegbe, said that discussions were on at the National Assembly to permit mothers to embark on six months maternity leave after delivery.

    He added that this would also support exclusive breastfeeding.

    Oloriegbe noted that Nigeria had not achieved its target as far as exclusive breastfeeding was concerned, adding that the environment had not been friendly to achieve that.

    “We must promote friendly environment for this initiative, a lot must be done to encourage this to meet our target,” he said.

    Mr Sheriff Olagunju, the NAFDAC Director of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said the implementation of BMS Code had earned the country improved rating in the 2020 International Code Status Report.

    He added that NAFDAC would not rest on its oars to continue to enforce the code.

    “The BMS Code spelt out roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in ensuring that breastfeeding is promoted, supported, and protected by implementing the provisions of the BMS Code and subsequent relevant WHA resolutions in its entirety.

    “These stakeholders include but not limited to the government, policy makers, healthcare workers, healthcare system, the media, mothers and their families, development partners, Non-Governmental Organisations and Civil Society Organisations.

    “The importance of breastfeeding is also evident in its significantly positive impact on our planet.

    “This is because breast-milk is a natural and renewable food which requires no preparation, no packaging, no storage and no transportation.

    “The earth benefits when women are encouraged to breastfeed their infants and young children, therefore, the enabling environment must be created by the society at large for this to happen,” Olagunju said.

  • Stop breastfeeding your husbands – Enugu Commissioner tells wives

    Stop breastfeeding your husbands – Enugu Commissioner tells wives

    Commissioner for Gender Affairs of Enugu State, Hon. Peace Nnaji want women to stop breastfeeding their husbands and reserve the breastmilk for their babies instead.

    The Commissioner made the remark at a United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) media dialogue with selected journalists from South East, South-South, and parts of North Central.

    She explained that it is wrong for men to be sharing their wives’ breastmilk with the babies while insisting that breastmilk is naturally meant for “the baby and not the man”.

    In her words: “Breastmilk is meant for babies and not their fathers. Mothers should stop feeding their husbands with their breastmilk, it’s for their babies.

    ”It’s wrong for mothers not to breastfeed their babies for fear of having flat or saggy breast.”

    The Commissioner also urged mothers to practice exclusive breastfeeding of their babies for at least the first six months after birth because of it has numerous benefits.

  • I lost movie role because I went home to breastfeed my child-Beverly Afaglo

    I lost movie role because I went home to breastfeed my child-Beverly Afaglo

    Popular Ghanaian actress, Beverly Afaglo has recounted how she lost a movie role because she went home to breastfeed her baby.

    The movie star spoke during a recent interview with Naa Ashorkor, Ghanaian radio host, on Asaase Radio 99.5 FM’s ‘Between Hours’.

    In the short video, the role interpreter narrated how she was flooded with calls from her mother to return home and attend to her little daughter while she was on the set of a television series.

    Afaglo said she then went home since the production team had delayed in shooting the series’ last scene.

    “I remember my first child, I was breastfeeding and normally I do breastfeed exclusively till the sixth month when it ends then I am done,” she said.

    “So it was like the end to the seventh month, and I think that week, I was doing my first job. And I went on set and I think we were supposed to finish that last scene at 5 pm, and we waited until 11 pm.

    “My mother was calling that my daughter doesn’t want to sleep, and that she has given her milk and everything but she doesn’t want to sleep. And I was worried, everybody was complaining.

    “I wasn’t the only one who complained, other people were saying they needed to go back to their shops, while other complained about mosquitoes.

    “Then the next moment, about a week after, I think, a colleague called me to say the producer actually said ‘you had to go home to breastfeed your child’ so because of that, he wrote me off. And it was a series, he wrote me out.

    “I apologized. And I wasn’t even the only one complaining but because mine was a complaint about breastfeeding my child, I lost the job”

  • Bambam laments over pains of breastfeeding

    Bambam laments over pains of breastfeeding

    Reality TV star and actress, Bambam who recently welcomed a baby girl alongside her husband, Teddy A has opened up on the pains of breastfeeding.
    A distraught Bambam took to her twitter page to reveal that her baby, Zendaya is giving her tough times as she is doing exclusive breastfeeding for her.

     

    Breast feeding hurts soooooo much I can’t lie!? but baby needs all of it. Prioritizing her needs above my pain is one tough school. And we have been doing soo well. #babyzen #exclusivebreastfeeding #motherhood

    We need to perfect the sleeping patterns. My small eyes are almost gone ????#babyzen #motherhood #exclusivebreastfeeding


    “Breast feeding hurts so much I can’t lie! but baby needs all of it. Prioritizing her needs above my pain is one tough school. And we have been doing soo well. Exclusive breastfeeding,’ she wrote.
    Bambam as she is fondly called also added that her baby won’t let her get enough sleep which is affecting her eyes.
    “The way I look for moments to sneak into a nap before my eyes fall off is something else .I’m told, it’s for me to comply, coz that’s when I get to eat or pee or do a few things and just when I want to take that nap she’s up again…We need to perfect the sleeping patterns. My small eyes are almost gone”.

     

    TheNewsGuru recalls that back in November 2019, BBNaija couple, Teddy A and Bambam shut down the city of Dubai for their wedding and your favorite celebrities showed up in their best.
    The couple’s outfit was designed by Toyin Lawani of Tiannah’s Place Empire while Bam Bam’s dresses were styled by Medlin Boss.
  • Difficulty in breastfeeding: Paediatrician urges mothers to seek medical advice

    Difficulty in breastfeeding: Paediatrician urges mothers to seek medical advice

    A Consultant Pediatrician with National Hospital Abuja, Dr Tolulope Otuneye, has advised nursing mothers to seek medical assistance when breastfeeding becomes difficult.

    Otuneye gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Saturday as the world marks “Breastfeeding Week”.

    Celebrated in more than 120 countries around the world, “World Breastfeeding Week” is an annual event held every year from Aug. 1 to Aug. 7.

    The consultant advised that whenever a mother encountered a challenge or anticipated a challenge with breastfeeding her infant, she should visit a pediatrician, a paediatric nurse or midwife for prompt
    advice.

    He added that “almost all mothers go through a period of questioning whether their milk supply is adequate, especially when they begin breastfeeding.

    “Many women think that milk supply is low when it isn’t. This can happen if the woman loses the feeling of fullness in her breasts or if milk stops leaking from the nipple.

    “But these are actually signs that the woman’s body has adjusted to the baby’s feeding requirement.”

    Otuneye said that low milk supply by nursing mothers could put a baby at risk for malnutrition, saying that it was necessary to seek medical help early.

    He explained that most times mother’s milk supply may diminish temporarily if the woman
    failed to feed her baby often because of nipple pain or due to poor latch-on technique.

    He said a biological or physical condition such as hormonal disorder or breast surgery could also cause milk supply to be low.

    He, therefore, noted that “women should seek early help by discussing with obstetricians or paediatricians.

    “Also, proper weaning method should be adopted at the right time because we advise that all babies should be breastfed exclusively in the first six months of life and breast milk should be part of the baby’s menu for at least two years.”

    The pediatrician stressed that exclusive breastfeeding would provide adequate nutrition for the
    baby in the first six months of life.

    The Aug. 1 to Aug. 7 World Breastfeeding Week is observed to bring to the fore, the importance of breastfeeding and its benefits to mother and child.